Radically Gay: Gay Liberation in the Words of Its Founder Book

As early as 1948 Harry Hay began pursuing his vision of forming an organization, the Mattachine Society, devoted to the welfare of Gay people. Hay was the first to propose the idea of Gay men and Lesbians as a cultural minority, the very basis of the Gay movement today. For the last fifty years, he has grappled with each new wave of cultural and political thought and synthesized agonizing contradictions from spirituality to Marxism, from art to politics. This first collection of Hay's own words - speeches, papers, and interviews - offers invaluable insight into the vision of one man who made it possible for millions to live in freedom and with self-respect.

Publishers Weekly

In 1950, Hay and fellow activists in Los Angeles founded the Mattachine Society, a pioneering homosexual rights group that helped lay the groundwork for contemporary lesbian/gay activism. This collection of Hay's essays, talks, pamphlets and manifestos reflects his insistence that gays are a cultural minority with shared values, psychological orientation, historical heritage and modes of communication. This perspective flowed from Hay's research into French Renaissance "fool" societies, which staged public plays spiked with political satire and gender reversal, and into the Native American berdache, a practice whereby men live as women (or vice versa) and combine the work and social roles of both sexes while being recognized as a distinct third gender. In 1979, Hay and others launched the "radical faerie" network, providing support groups and emphasizing gay spirituality to counter urban depersonalization. His pointed critique of homophobia and his exhortations to gays seeking self-acceptance make this collection especially timely. Roscoe, who has taught anthropology and Native American studies at the University of California, provides a useful introduction as well as commentaries on each selection. Translation rights: Jed Mattes. (June)